Pressurized welding processes, and pressurized tungsten inert gas (TIG) welding processes in particular, are conducted in a sealed pressure chamber. Flooding the weld chamber with a shielding gas creates pressure in the weld chamber. After the desired pressure is achieved the weld chamber is sealed. There is thus no flow of shielding gas through the weld chamber to sweep metal vapors formed in the welding zone away from the electrode tips. In this environment, blobs of metal form on the electrode tips, causing them to become unusable. Typically, electrodes must be replaced after about five to ten welds. Metal buildup or blob formation at the electrode tip causes welds of unacceptable quality. Furthermore, metal buildup often falls from the electrode tip into the weld puddle, thus contaminating the weld and making the object being welded unacceptable. A further problem with such pressurized welding processes is the rapid buildup of metal oxide in the pressure chamber which necessitates frequent cleaning of the weld chamber.